Residential burning season will be opening, with limited hours, on Monday, Oct. 2. Residential burning with a permit will be allowed from dawn until noon only. Residential burning status will have expanded hours when the moisture levels in the region increase.

Permits can be obtained at your local fire district stations: Lopez, Orcas, San Juan and Shaw. They also can be obtained online at http://www.sanjuanco.com/1091/Burn-Permits. Commercial burn permits are not currently for sale, they will be going on sale later in the fall.

The fire marshal would like to remind you all that residential burn permits are for the burning of natural materials such as yard waste and downed branches and trees and should be organized into piles no larger than 10 feet in diameter. Burning is only allowed outside of Urban Growth Areas, please check the status of your property prior to burning. A charged hose should be on site at all times. The burning of garbage, construction scraps, plywood, or plastics is illegal and subject to ticketing and fines from San Juan County as well as the Washington State Department of Ecology.

If you have any questions, email the fire marshal’s office at: richardm@sanjuanco.com or call your local fire district.